Raising the Alms Bowl
CultureChinese
Date18th century
MediumHandscroll; ink on paper
DimensionsOverall: 11 1/2 × 222 1/2 inches (29.21 × 565.15 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: William Rockhill Nelson Trust
Object number35-165
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionLong scroll depicting the assembling of the demons and demon mother in an attempt to open the Buddha's alms bowl.Gallery LabelThe fine line drawing
(baimiao) in this long scroll illustrates the story of Harītī, Mother of
a Thousand Demons. She had a great appetite for human children, which terrified
parents. To subdue the demon mother, Buddha hid Harītī’s favorite child under
an alms bowl, a monk’s vessel that represents religious value. All her attempts
to rescue the child were unsuccessful. To have her favorite child returned, Harītī
finally yielded to Buddha. From right to left, we see ladies attend to the
grieving Harītī and demons lifting the alms bowl that imprisons her favorite
son. After her conversion, Harītī became a protector of Buddhism and a
fertility deity who blesses couples with children.
Purchased through Laurence Sickman by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1935.
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please e-mail provenance@nelson-atkins.org.
Delhi Sultanate period (1173-1526)
35-177
